


If we could have this life again

by starkheir



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Major character death - Freeform, Oneshot, Retelling, fredric babies made me do it, im sorry?, you already know
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-07
Updated: 2020-08-07
Packaged: 2021-03-06 07:21:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,768
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25769593
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/starkheir/pseuds/starkheir
Summary: They were supposed to be each other’s forever.
Relationships: Cedric Diggory/Fred Weasley
Comments: 5
Kudos: 20





	If we could have this life again

«When he shall die, take him and cut him out in little stars, and he will make the face of heaven so fine, that all the world will be in love with night and pay no worship to the garnish sun.» 

— William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet 

The early evening sky shone blue above them, just the shade of Cedric’s favorite color. 

Fred often wondered how Molly had managed to perfectly match Cedric’s eye color, a vibrant and captivating blue, when she had knitted the annual Weasley Christmas Sweater for him. Additionally to the traditional one that proudly showed the Hufflepuff house colors, black and yellow, Cedric had received a gorgeous, blue sweater, with a golden “C” embroidered on it. (Admittedly, Fred wore that sweater more often than Cedric himself did, but it was the thought that counted.) 

“I can’t believe it’s almost over”, Cedric said, from where he laid on the grass next to Fred. One arm behind his head to ensure comfort and one tracing soft patterns into the skin of Fred’s left hand, Cedric smiled lazily. “Summer break seems so close now.”

“Oh, will you come home with me and meet my family? Convince my father to let me run off with you, and hold every door we come across open for me?”, Fred teased, grinning up at the brunette. 

Cedric rolled his halfway closed eyes, a smirk stretching on his face. It was a pretty handsome face, Fred had to admit. “As if I have never met your parents. Just last summer, we literally-“

“Shush, let me live out my Romeo and Juliette fantasy.”, Fred interrupted him, swatting Cedric’s chest, who just chuckled. 

“You know they both die at the end of that, right?”

Fred’s eyes widened comically. “They do? Why would anyone write that! No one wants an unhappy ending.”

“It’s a classic, and a quite tragic one at that. We should go and see a muggle play of it, Cho recommend it to me.”, Cedric answered easily, drawing Fred’s hand closer to his chest . 

“Why, Mr. Diggory, are you asking me on a real date?”, Fred grinned, half sitting up. 

Cedric opened one eye and raised his eyebrow. “Are you insinuating that our Hogsmeade dates weren’t real?” 

Now it was Fred’s turn to roll his eyes. “Shut up, Romeo. You know what I mean.” 

Cedric’s smile softened and the teasing glint in his eyes subsided. “I do. And soon, we can do everything we want. Now it’s practically only the Third Task that’s left.” 

“Will you even remember me when you’re Hogwarts Champion, between all your meetings with foreign Ministers and lunch dates with Celestina Warbeck?”, Fred joked, dramatically raising his hand to cover his heart. 

Cedric huffed. “I’m sure I can make _some_ space for you.”

“You better.”, Fred grumbled, fixing Cedric with a fake glare. The smile he got in return was almost blinding and made a warm and fuzzy feeling spread in Fred’s stomach. 

In one languid notion, Cedric leaned up to press a short kiss to his boyfriends lips. “Of course. The Third Task, and then I will take you to see Romeo and Juliet. On a _real_ date.” 

Fred grinned again and, not even trying to resist the urge to bury his hands in Cedrics hair, pulled the brunette in for another kiss. 

And if the did miss dinner that evening, no one had to know about it.

-

Fred wasn’t sure who of the two of them was more nervous about to upcoming Task, as he watched Cedric entering the small area infront of the entrances to the Labyrinth. Delacour and Krum were already waiting, their respective headmasters standing behind them. Madam Maxine placed a comforting hand on Fleur’s shoulder, and even from his place up in the stands, Fred could see the tight anxiousness in her beautiful features. 

Fred’s hand on the barrier tightened, as Cedric’s eyes met his, finding him in a crowd of hundreds of people within a single heartbeat. The encouraging smile he sent Fred did nothing to ease the tight knots in his stomach, as Fred could easily see the tension in his boyfriends shoulders, the uncertainty in his eyes, and the stiffness of his stance. 

“I love you.”, he mouthed in Cedrics direction, his eyes never leaving him. Nodding once, trying to convey reassurance, he added,“You got this.”

Cedric slowly raised his hand and placed right over his head. It was almost as if Fred could actually hear his voice, as Cedric mouthed the three words he so longed to hear back at him. 

For a single moment, all the anxiety that was pent-up in Fred fell away, his hands unclenched and his breathing turned calm, as brown met blue and the world came to a stop. 

They were abruptly ripped back into reality by a booming signal tone, and everything crashed back down on Fred. He watched unmoving, as Cedric sent him a single last nod and then turned to the monstrous hedge behind him. Then, one by one, the champions entered the maze, and the green hell swallowed them whole. 

What followed were without a doubt the longest hours of Fred’s life. The tension that held the whole crowd never fully subsided, as from time to time mysterious noises echoed through the evening summer air, always keeping them on alert. 

As the red sparks of the signaling location spell lit up the maze and the stands in a distant red glimmer, Fred’s heart stopped beating for multiple seconds. Cedric? _Please don’t let him be hurt - Please let him be okey - Please -_

George’s comforting hand on his shoulder was the only thing grounding him during the horrible moments as a team of chaperones stormed into the maze in search for whoever had sent the signaling spell. 

When a few minutes later the team resurfaced, a very shaken and sickly looking Delacour in tow, Fred sucked in a deep breath. He felt weirdly nauseous and had to lean against the balustrade to keep standing upright. The usually so tough Veela now looked like she had been crying — even from their place up in the stands, Fred was able to make out her red rimmed eyes. 

When Krum followed only minutes after, Fred had to physically restrain himself from jumping over the balustrade and running up to the Bulgarian Champion and his visibly concerned Headmaster, to demand for information about _what exactly was happening in that fucking maze to his boyfriend._

After Krum’s dropping out of the Task, silence followed. Heavy, thick, undisturbed silence. _What was happening?_ Fred’s paranoia only grew as each new minute ticked by where nothing happened, not one sign of life from neither Harry nor Cedric. 

“He will be okay.”, George promised, his hand tightening on Fred’s shoulder. Fred nodded numbly, because of course he was. 

A short flash of white ripped through the dark evening air, and then two silhouettes stumbled onto the grass, landing in a heap of bodies on the ground. The moment Fred recognized Harry’s messy, dark hair and Cedric’s black, yellow accented champion uniform, a huge breath of relief escaped him. They were here. They were _okey_.

His breath still flat, Fred had to brace himself against the barrier to keep standing, while he watched as multiple people approached the two hogwarts champions. Confused murmuring followed - had that been supposed to happen? 

There was no space for thoughts that weren’t immediately connected to Cedric in Fred’s head right now. He could barely wait for the moment that Cedrics eyes found his again, reassuring him that he was indeed healthy and unharmed.

But Cedric didn’t turn. He remained on the floor, next to a panting Harry. 

Fred recognized that something was very very wrong the same moment, as a heart wrenching scream rung out, slicing through the whispers and murmurs like a curse. The whole arena fell quiet at once, watching as Amos Diggory ripped away from Arthur’s half hearted grip and roughly brushed past the chaperones that were hastily approaching the pair on the grass. 

Dumbledore hot on his heels, the man stumbled as fast as he could, drowning in hysterics.

"That’s my boy!", the scream sounded wretched, broken, wet. "That’s my _son_!" 

Something deep, deep inside Fred shattered to pieces. It felt like his heart had been dumped into the black sea, gone cold. _No. Cedric must be unconscious, perhaps hit by a stunning spell. He was alright._ Fred was stuck in a loop of wanting to rush down to the field and not being able to move, because his feet were not his to command right now.

His whole body felt heavy, so, so unbelievably heavy. He couldn’t breathe. His mouth was open but he couldn’t breathe and — _No_. 

Next thing Fred knew, he was roughly pushing George and Lee away from him, stumbling down the set of stairs, paying no attention to other spectators in his way. _Cedric. Cedric. Cedric_. 

There was someone who tried to hold him back, perhaps McGonagall or his father, but Fred’s eyes were too focused on his boyfriend’s unmoving form to care or notice. He wretched his arm away, speeding up once more. 

The closer Fred came, the feeling of something being very, very wrong intensified. 

His feet didn’t move like he wanted them to, and Fred promptly stumbled to the ground, only a few feet away from Cedric. _He still hadn’t moved._

Amos Diggory’s sobbing figure still hid Cedrics face, so Fred had to get _closer closer closer —_

Half crawling, half stumbling, Fred rushed closer, falling to his knees again as he finally reached Cedric’s side. 

Open, dull orbs stared straight ahead, unanimated and without any signs of life. Cedric Diggory’s beautiful face was slack and cold, his expression painfully empty. Fred’s heart stopped beating for a moment. It felt like his whole world had dipped, falling through the ground forever falling _falling falling —_

_He couldn’t be. Cedric could not - could simply not be dead. No. No._

His chest felt so so tight, no air left within. 

Fred’s hand found Cedric’s, and even in death, they fit without question, hesitation or exception, like the answer to a long asked question. "Ced."

Fred raised his free hand to his boyfriend’s face, cupping his jaw, gently smoothing over the skin of his cheekbones. "Ced, please."

He wasn’t capable of other words, the name of his love forever printed on his tongue, replaying the prayer like a broken record over and over again. Their forever had been supposed to be longer. 

And the early evening sky shone blue above them, just the shade of Cedric’s favorite color.

**Author's Note:**

> This work is NOT betaed so there will be mistakes. You’re more than welcome to point them out to me to save myself from embarrassing myself by making first year spelling mistakes. 
> 
> I hope I could make you cry <3


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